ND HALL.

She hath a natural wise sincerity,
A simple truthfulness, and these have lent her
A dignity as nameless as the center.

LOWELL.
What thou bidd'st
Unargued I obey; so God ordains:
God is thy law; thou mine, to know no more
Is woman's happiest knowledge, and her praise.

MILTON.

Lady Redmond sat in her "blue nestie;" but this bright winter's
morning she was not alone. A better companion than her white kitten,
or her favorite Nero, or even her faithful friend Pierre the St.
Bernard, occupied the other velvet rocking-chair.

Outside the snow lay deep and unbroken on the terrace, the little lake
was a sheet of blue ice, and the sunshine broke on its crisp surface
in sparkles of light.

The avenue itself looked like the glade of some enchanted forest, with
snow and icicles pendent from every bough; while above stretched the
pure blue winter's sky, blue-gray, shadowless, tenderly indicative of
softness without warmth and color without radiance.

Fay in her dark ruby dress looked almost as brilliant as the morning
itself as she sat by the fire talking to her husband's cousin Erle
Huntingdon, who had come down to while away an idle week or two at the
old Hall.

He had been there for ten days now, and he and Fay had become very
intimate. Erle had been much struck by the singular beauty of Hugh's
child-wife, and he very soon felt almost a brotherly fondness for the
gentle little creature, with her soft vivacity and innocent mirth.

It had been a very pleasant ten days to both of them, to Fay
especially, who led rather a lonely life.

Erle was such a pleasant companion; he was never too tired or too busy
to talk to her. He was so good-natured, so frank and affectionate, so
eager to wait on her and do her any little service, that Fay wondered
what she would do without him.

Hugh smiled at them indulgently. It always pleased him to see his Wee
Wifie happy and amused; but he thought they were like two children
together, and secretly marveled at the scraps of conversation that
reached his ears. He thought it was a good thing that Fay should have
a companion for her rides and drives when he was too busy to go with
her himself, and somehow Hugh was always too busy now.

So Fay and Erle scoured the country together, and when Frost came they
skated for hours on the little la